This mountain climber should consider buying some scratch-offs with his crazy luck!
On Saturday, New Zealand Police reported a man was found lying at about 6,293 feet up on Mount Taranaki while his friends and fellow climbers were much higher up near the summit of the 8,261 foot tall mountain.
After the North Island climbers noticed their friend had slid “down the mountain out of view” when they were near the summit, one of them went down to help the man who had fallen. He was quickly followed by a member of Taranaki Alpine Rescue. But it was a LONG way down — almost exactly 2,000 feet — and the climbing party was terrified about what might have happened.
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By the time police arrived, they confirmed the man had fallen down the mountain from the summit for roughly 1,968 feet. But somehow, he only sustained MINOR injuries.
WOW!
The TAR officer and the other climber helped the unnamed man down the mountain after they treated his injuries, because during the major fall he’d lost his climbing axe and crampons. In a release from the NZP, they said he’s “exceptionally lucky” to still be alive, and explained just how he survived:
“Thanks to recent spring weather, the ice had softened, and the snow caught the climber’s fall. He is exceptionally lucky to be alive.”
Jeez…
If the snow wouldn’t have softened, the man would’ve fallen down on rock-solid ice, which would mean immediate death. SO scary! This was nothing short of a miracle!
[Image via Euan Cherry/COVER Images/WENN]